Topic: FF800 latest firmware and driver with Intensity Pro card.

Hi all,
I think I'm going to be alone on this issue, but hoping other peoples mileage as this used to all work a treat, oh and still does to a degree.

As many of you know, you can use external devices for display out of video in Logic Pro (as you can with many other DAWs).
My chosen device is a Blackmagic Intensity Pro card... The PCIe version of this

http://www.blackmagic-design.com/products/intensity/

I use it in conjunction with my Fireface800 running off the Firewire800 port on the back of the MacPro 2.8 x 8 core.
Up until recently (i cannot specify when exactly) it was working perfectly, but now, when I switch the vision to the Black magic card, the FF800 goes silent and Logic no longer outputs any audio.
When I reset the audio driver, by changing the sample back and forth in the Logic settings, I can get it working again. Note, than when I switch the vision from the ext display back to the desktop monitors, the audio is unaffected. ie it keeps working.

When I do the same thing with a Babyface, it all works perfectly. 

I have tried reverting back to older drivers for the FF800 (ie 2.75) but it doesn't help... It might be the newer firmware perhaps?? But I can't downgrade that from what I have seen.


Any advice appreciated.

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Matt McKenzie-Smith (UFXII, UFX, Babyface) MacStudioUltra OS13.2.1
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2

Re: FF800 latest firmware and driver with Intensity Pro card.

If you do this please watch the red Host LED on the FF800. It seems that there is a FW bus reset going on...

Regards
Matthias Carstens
RME

Re: FF800 latest firmware and driver with Intensity Pro card.

Hi Matthias,
Thanks for the quick response.
I just had another look and the Host error LED doesn't light up at all when switching the video device to either internal or external display.
Also, note that doing the same thing in ProTools is not a problem. It works.
So it seems to be Logic related, but it used to work all the time and there haven't been any Logic updates of late. The only thing I can think of that I've changed in recent times, is the update to 2.90 and 2.91 with the firmware update.
I ran the 2.75 installer and it didn't help.
Thanks again,
Matt

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Matt McKenzie-Smith (UFXII, UFX, Babyface) MacStudioUltra OS13.2.1
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Re: FF800 latest firmware and driver with Intensity Pro card.

Maybe something happened to the way Core Audio is implemented (again) in one of the recent MacOSX.6.x updates.

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Matt McKenzie-Smith (UFXII, UFX, Babyface) MacStudioUltra OS13.2.1
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5

Re: FF800 latest firmware and driver with Intensity Pro card.

Might be. I wonder if this has to do with the default audio device settings in Mac OS.

Regards
Matthias Carstens
RME

6 (edited by mattrixx 2011-04-18 09:08:46)

Re: FF800 latest firmware and driver with Intensity Pro card.

Aha.. I've got it!!
Thanks Matthias.. you steered in the right direction once again.

After checking the default audio I/O for Mac audio in systems prefs to no avail, I thought I'd check out what I've got going on in Audio Midi Setup.... and then thought... hang on, This all went pear shaped when I bought the upgrade to ProTools 9!! 

I had an aggregate audio device made up of just the Fireface800 i/o. After deleting this, we're all back to the way things should be.
The aggregate device for ProTools came about as one of AVIDs suggestions in the documentation. I do not need it as I address the FF800 directly in the Protools audio settings.

Anyway, I'm a happy guy!! It's all working the way it should be!!

Thanks once again MC!

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Matt McKenzie-Smith (UFXII, UFX, Babyface) MacStudioUltra OS13.2.1
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